Okay, so I started a Twitter account, not because I think my Tweets are that interesting, but to cyberstalk agents, writers and publishers I find interesting. LOL Here's my twitter account if you want to follow me:
http://www.twitter.com/ellissromance
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
How to become an urban romance writer
I noticed that alot of people who have stumbled upon my fair bloggidy blog aren't coming to learn more about me or my work (*sigh LOL) but how to get into writing urban romance. (And by "urban", I mean black, African American, "brown complected"! This is very different from "urban lit", which I don't write. If there's is a "wifey", "mamas", or a surperfluous "Z" in the title somewhere then you've probably picked up an urban lit novel.) Well the simple answer is getting into urban romance is much like getting into any other literary genre. Those steps include but aren't limited to:
1) Read, read, and read some more. Specifically, read books that are in the genre in which you wish to write to get a true feel for the genre and the market. Believe it or not there are rules for this stuff. (Who knew?!?) If you've gone to enough writers' blogs or workshops, you'll see that there is a basic format for romance, chick lit, horror, mystery, etc. -- at least those that fit commercially within these genres. If you want to make your work marketable, I suggest you stick to these formats as close as possible but give it your own creative spin (which is the true talent of a good writer).
2) Write, edit, rinse and repeat. Very few writers can pen a stellar manuscript in the first draft. Once you've finished writing your manuscript, now comes the task of editing it for grammar, syntax, consistency, character development, etc. I like to edit every few pages as I'm writing, and then once the full manuscript is completed, I do a few more edits, looking at the book in its entirety to ensure consistency. (Did I make sure I spelled the character's nickname the same way throughout the book? One character doesn't have a Texan accent that completely disappears by Chapter 12, does it? Is it raining at the beginning of the scene and then it's suddenly sunny by the end of the scene?)
3) Get a good, HONEST sounding board. Have someone else read your work, but make sure you pick someone who likes and is familiar with the genre in which you're writing. Having a second, third, or fourth pair of eyes on your manuscript can never hurt. Sometimes feedback can an eye-opening (or painful LOL) experience, but I consider it invaluable.
4) The dreaded "wait and see". Now you've written your book. You've done your edits. You've gotten critiques from fellow writers or a trusted friend who you know will be honest with you. You've done more tweaks based on their feedback. Now maybe... just maybe, your manuscript is ready for submission to agents and/or publishers. Wait! Actually, thanks to modern technology and the free market, you can entirely skip this step. All hail to the Createspace and Smashwords of the world! Now you can upload your masterpiece and sell it directly to consumers. But for those who wish to work with traditional, New York based publishing houses, you'll probably going to need either an agent or to submit to the publishers who are willing to accept unagented work.
I've done both: submitted to agents and to publishers. So far, I've had better luck with submitting to publishers directly. (That's how I had two short stories published with the Arabesque line of BET Books back in 2001 and 2003 and had two novels published by Genesis Press last year.) But I wouldn't discount agents entirely.
This submission process usually follows a gauntlet of 3 steps: 1) the query letter, 2) the partial manuscript submission and synopsis, 3) the full manuscript submission. At either of these steps you could get a rejection from an agent or a publisher. (And frankly most writers do.) I'll go more into the gory details about the submission process in my next post.
I hope this post helps to those interested.
1) Read, read, and read some more. Specifically, read books that are in the genre in which you wish to write to get a true feel for the genre and the market. Believe it or not there are rules for this stuff. (Who knew?!?) If you've gone to enough writers' blogs or workshops, you'll see that there is a basic format for romance, chick lit, horror, mystery, etc. -- at least those that fit commercially within these genres. If you want to make your work marketable, I suggest you stick to these formats as close as possible but give it your own creative spin (which is the true talent of a good writer).
2) Write, edit, rinse and repeat. Very few writers can pen a stellar manuscript in the first draft. Once you've finished writing your manuscript, now comes the task of editing it for grammar, syntax, consistency, character development, etc. I like to edit every few pages as I'm writing, and then once the full manuscript is completed, I do a few more edits, looking at the book in its entirety to ensure consistency. (Did I make sure I spelled the character's nickname the same way throughout the book? One character doesn't have a Texan accent that completely disappears by Chapter 12, does it? Is it raining at the beginning of the scene and then it's suddenly sunny by the end of the scene?)
3) Get a good, HONEST sounding board. Have someone else read your work, but make sure you pick someone who likes and is familiar with the genre in which you're writing. Having a second, third, or fourth pair of eyes on your manuscript can never hurt. Sometimes feedback can an eye-opening (or painful LOL) experience, but I consider it invaluable.
4) The dreaded "wait and see". Now you've written your book. You've done your edits. You've gotten critiques from fellow writers or a trusted friend who you know will be honest with you. You've done more tweaks based on their feedback. Now maybe... just maybe, your manuscript is ready for submission to agents and/or publishers. Wait! Actually, thanks to modern technology and the free market, you can entirely skip this step. All hail to the Createspace and Smashwords of the world! Now you can upload your masterpiece and sell it directly to consumers. But for those who wish to work with traditional, New York based publishing houses, you'll probably going to need either an agent or to submit to the publishers who are willing to accept unagented work.
I've done both: submitted to agents and to publishers. So far, I've had better luck with submitting to publishers directly. (That's how I had two short stories published with the Arabesque line of BET Books back in 2001 and 2003 and had two novels published by Genesis Press last year.) But I wouldn't discount agents entirely.
This submission process usually follows a gauntlet of 3 steps: 1) the query letter, 2) the partial manuscript submission and synopsis, 3) the full manuscript submission. At either of these steps you could get a rejection from an agent or a publisher. (And frankly most writers do.) I'll go more into the gory details about the submission process in my next post.
I hope this post helps to those interested.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Night Owl Reviews Gives A Love Built to Last the Thumbs Up!
It's amazing to have a book published, but its never easy to hear reviews about your work. (Will they like it? Will they hate it? Ugh, will they say how MUCH they hate it???) Thankfully, once again, A Love Built to Last has gotten a good review, this time from Night Owl Reviews. They gave it a 4.25 out 5... pretty good! Just shy of a top pick for the site.
Read the review here. A few plot spoilers are included in the review.
Read the review here. A few plot spoilers are included in the review.
Monday, November 28, 2011
"A Love Built to Last" Hardback Goes on Sale Dec. 1!
Pre-order a copy of A Love Built to Last or buy a copy staring Dec. 1 at Black Expressions Book Club.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
I've Found It! My New Favorite Blog!
Writing can be a lonely enterprise. Editing, pitching your work to agents and editors, and marketing can be time consuming and frustrating. It's good to have a community of like-minded people to bounce ideas off of, ask questions, joke around with, and just learn more about the industry and the craft. That is why Romance University has become my new favorite blog.
Not everyone has time to frequent romance industry conferences and workshops. This blog, which is written by an RU "faculty" that includes romance writers such as Carina Press's Adrienne Giordano and soon-to-be Sourcebooks author Tracey Devlyn, offers the same opportunities to network online. I laughed out loud at Giordano's entry on her book rankings addiction. (Admittedly, I have it too. When one of my novels comes out I can check my rankings on Amazon almost hourly, regretfully. LOL) They've also had guest posts from agents and editors who say what they're looking for and why your book pitch may never make it out of the slush pile. They even take questions. A schedulei of a list of upcoming posts is also included.
If you're a aspiring romance writer or a published romance author, this is a great tool (and stress reliever.) I HIGHLY recommend it.
http://romanceuniversity.org/
Not everyone has time to frequent romance industry conferences and workshops. This blog, which is written by an RU "faculty" that includes romance writers such as Carina Press's Adrienne Giordano and soon-to-be Sourcebooks author Tracey Devlyn, offers the same opportunities to network online. I laughed out loud at Giordano's entry on her book rankings addiction. (Admittedly, I have it too. When one of my novels comes out I can check my rankings on Amazon almost hourly, regretfully. LOL) They've also had guest posts from agents and editors who say what they're looking for and why your book pitch may never make it out of the slush pile. They even take questions. A schedulei of a list of upcoming posts is also included.
If you're a aspiring romance writer or a published romance author, this is a great tool (and stress reliever.) I HIGHLY recommend it.
http://romanceuniversity.org/
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Case of the mysteriously disappearing book...
(POST UPDATED)
Hello,
You may have noticed (or not) that on Amazon.com, my next book, A Love Built to Last, has either disappeared completely or no longer has a publishing date. I've been notified by Genesis Press Inc. that all books under its imprints starting in November 2011 will switch to ebook only BUT good news! I'm also told that A Love Built to Last will be offered by Black Expressions Book Club in hardback by DECEMBER 1ST!
Thanks to all who pre-ordered the paperback. Sorry for the last minute change. If you don't have a Kindle, Kobo, Nook, or many of the other ereader incarnations, please order it through Black Expressions. (It looks like they're offering a good membership deal!)Thank you sincerely for your support!
L.S. Childers
lschildersromance@gmail.com
Hello,
You may have noticed (or not) that on Amazon.com, my next book, A Love Built to Last, has either disappeared completely or no longer has a publishing date. I've been notified by Genesis Press Inc. that all books under its imprints starting in November 2011 will switch to ebook only BUT good news! I'm also told that A Love Built to Last will be offered by Black Expressions Book Club in hardback by DECEMBER 1ST!
Thanks to all who pre-ordered the paperback. Sorry for the last minute change. If you don't have a Kindle, Kobo, Nook, or many of the other ereader incarnations, please order it through Black Expressions. (It looks like they're offering a good membership deal!)Thank you sincerely for your support!
L.S. Childers
lschildersromance@gmail.com
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Second review in!
Okay, admittedly its not as stellar as the last one, but hey, you can't knock them all out the park. Got a 3 out of 4 1/2 stars with a "hot" ranking on sensuality. At least they didn't say it sucked! LOL
http://www.rtbookreviews.com/book-review/love-built-last
Thanks to Romance Times for review. (Note: This link is available for subscribers only until January. Then its available for the general audience.)
http://www.rtbookreviews.com/book-review/love-built-last
Thanks to Romance Times for review. (Note: This link is available for subscribers only until January. Then its available for the general audience.)
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